


Happy SNS New Year!

by ichigotchi



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Drinking, Fluff and Humor, M/M, New Year's Kiss, sasuke has no plans for nye and naruto cant stand to see him alone for the biggest night of the year
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-10
Updated: 2019-01-10
Packaged: 2019-10-02 09:47:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17262005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ichigotchi/pseuds/ichigotchi
Summary: Naruto is a strong believer that New Year's Eve should be spent doing three things: laughing, drinking and socialising. Now all he has to do is drag Sasuke along for the ride.





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> This was intended to be released on the 1st or 2nd of January but I'm slow so it's late — sorry!
> 
> Some notes for non-UK readers, as pointed out to me by my american friends who beta-d this:
> 
> -Boxing Day is what we call the 26th of December. It's a National Holiday here.  
> -Our University Grading system works differently. The highest grade is a First (70%+ overall), then 2:1 (60%-69% overall), then 2:2 (50%-59% overall) and then a Third (40%-49% overall). Most students aim for a 2:1 or First.  
> -In the UK it's pretty common for uni students to study in public libraries — not just the library of their chosen university. It's especially common when you attend university away from your hometown and then come home for Christmas / Easter / summer. Therefore it's easy to meet other students who aren't attending the same uni as you.  
> -Legal drinking age in the UK is 18, but it's very common for people to drink a lot younger than that.

The library was quiet with the only sounds being the soft turning of pages or the muffled scraping of chairs as people sat down at the tables dotted around the large room encased by bookshelves. The tall windows let in the afternoon light and illuminated the shelves in a soft orange glow.

Sasuke had always preferred studying at the public library than his room — something about the soft sounds and the smell of old books made it easier to focus. He scribbled some more notes around Astrophysics — one of his weaker subjects. Exams started in two weeks and he’d be damned if he let them slip after maintaining a high 80 for all of University so far.

Karin had reprimanded him for studying so hard over Christmas break, but for Sasuke Christmas had been a little depressing ever since his parents passed anyway. Burying himself in his studies was a nice reprise from the faint loneliness he felt at home during the festive, family-orientated period. Of course he had Itachi, but doctors did not get the Christmas break off work and so the only time Itachi had been home for more than 24 hours was half of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and half of boxing day. Then he was back to work, and the house was eerily silent again.

As he poured over his textbook, jotting down some more notes on stellar dynamics, he heard a chair pull back at his own table and looked up.

Bright blue eyes stared back at him and he was met with a wide grin, blonde hair jutting out from under a wooly orange hat. He recognised this guy — he was in the library almost as often as Sasuke was. He frequently saw him at a table or browsing the shelves behind the area Sasuke always situated himself at, but they’d never actually spoken before.

“Hey,” the other whispered, “I hope you don’t mind me sitting here”.

Sasuke nodded his approval and then turned back to his textbook. He continued to scribble down notes for another ten minutes before he was interrupted.

“Whatcha studying?”

Sasuke glanced up again and saw his table-mate looking curiously at his textbook and notes.

“Physics.”

“Oh damn. I could never do physics, I sucked at it in high school. It’s so confusing! You must be mega smart.”

“I find it interesting.” Sasuke replied in a clipped tone. He didn’t appreciate being disturbed.

“Well that’s good. I’ve always thought it’s super important to be interested in what you study, y’know. I don’t get those business majors who only study business because they know they can get a high paying job out of it. What a way to spend 3 years of your life! I love my degree, I can’t imagine having the concentration if I didn’t find it fascinating.”

Sasuke was silent for a moment and then murmured his agreement before turning back to his textbook.

“Not gonna ask me what I study?”

“Not particularly interested.” Sasuke replied without looking up.

He heard a snort. “You’re kinda rude, you know that?”

“I’ve been told.”

Another snort. “Well I study psychology, incase you were secretly wondering. Third year. What about you?”

“What does it matter?”

“I’m interested! You’re in the library — alone — a few days after christmas. You must have exams coming up like I do! I’m bored and my mind has melted after trying to memorise the anatomy of the brain for the 900th time in the last week and I’m trying to make conversation.”

Someone at a neighbouring table then proceeded to loudly shush the intruder at his table, who flushed pink and mouthed an apology at them. Silence took over the table for another few minutes before Sasuke decided to respond in a hushed tone.

“I’m third year too. Exams start just after the semester begins.”

“Same here! I did really bad last year so I’m trying to bring up my grade so I can at least graduate with a 2:2, maybe a 2:1 if I’m lucky! I’ll need to get like, 90s in everything for that though which is pretty much a pipedream for me so I’ll aim for a 2:2 I think.”

“Good luck with that.”

Silence for a few moments more and Sasuke thought with relief that finally his table-mate had gotten the message. He was wrong.

“What about you? From the way your notes are organised and the fact you sit in here a lot I’d say you’re pretty smart. I bet you’re not worried about a 2:2.”

“I’m well on track for a First. Just here to ensure I achieve it.”

The blonde let out a low, quiet whistle. “Alright smarty-pants, no need to rub it in. Though, at least you’re studying. I have this one friend, Shikamaru, who’s never gotten below a 93 and he doesn’t study at all. It is the most frustrating thing ever. He does maths as well! Maths! Imagine being able to ace a mathematics degree without even trying!”

“That is pretty annoying. Sounds like my brother.”

“You have a brother? And what, he’s a genius too? God I’m so jealous. I mean at least you’re part of the same gene pool. Pretty good prospects for you right?”

“I guess. He’s a doctor, graduated with 98% overall from Oxford for his undergrad. The highest grade they’ve seen in Medicine for 25 years I think.”

“Shit, that’s ridiculous. A lot to live up to though I bet. I don’t know if I could handle that kind of pressure.”

“Hn.” Sasuke didn’t mind talking about Itachi, afterall he was his only family and though he wouldn’t admit it freely, he looked up to him massively. However, when conversation strayed into the comparison of the two, it hit sort of a sore spot.

Sasuke re-focussed on his work, but his mind now strayed to thoughts of his father throughout childhood, constantly comparing his achievements to Itachi’s — how his were never quite as good. It left a bitter taste in his mouth even now, despite how much he missed his parents, the fact that even til the last moment he had never felt like his father was proud of him.

“Hey. Sorry if I hit a sore spot. I bet you get that a lot — about your brother and you I mean. I’m an only child, so I don’t really get it, but you’re lucky to have a sibling! I bet it was fun having someone to play with growing up! I always wanted a little sister, I thought it would be super fun and I could protect her and teach her the ways of the world but—”

He cut himself off and Sasuke looked up, catching a sadness in the other’s eye.

Against his better judgement, Sasuke probed— “But?”

“Mum died when I was 9 so they didn’t get the chance to give me a sibling. I mean, I don’t know if they were even planning on it, but that kind of went out the window when one half of the dna pool vanished so...” He let out a short, quiet laugh and rubbed the back of his head.

“I’m sorry.”

“No need, dude. I brought it up. Just one of those things at Christmas. When you have family missing it’s kind of hard to ignore it at this time of year. Everything is geared towards families, sort of brings memories to the forefront.”

“Yeah.”

“So...how was your christmas? You spend it with your brother?”

“Yeah. It was okay I suppose. He doesn’t get much time off but we had drinks Christmas Eve and dinner Christmas Day.”

“Sounds nice! What about your ‘rents? I bet they’re glad to have you home from Uni for Christmas?”

“Yeah…” Sasuke didn’t want to talk about his parents, especially not to a stranger.

“Sorry, I’m babbling again. I do that a lot, you probably noticed. My friends say as soon as a thought pops into my head it comes out of my mouth. It’s a bad habit.”

“I noticed.”

“No need to be an ass about it!” The other kicked Sasuke’s leg under the table, which earned him a glare.

“Look, there’s no way I’m gonna get any more done. My brain feels like it’s been eaten and then shit out again, so I’m gonna go get a drink. Wanna join? You look like you’ve sat in here all day, and I could use the company.”

Sasuke met the gaze of the other in mild surprise. It was one thing striking up conversation with someone you share a table with at the library, Sasuke had it happen many times before. But asking a stranger for a drink? He sat back and thought — what was the worst that could happen? The guy talked a little too much, but overall he was pleasant and he was right — Sasuke had been sat in here since 11am. He glanced at his phone and found it was now 4:45pm. He’d be packing up and heading home in the next half an hour anyway. Maybe it would be nice to humour someone, in the name of Christmas kindness? Besides, all that was waiting for him at home was a silence and a ready-meal, and his friends were all still busy indulging in family time.

“Okay.”

The other’s face lit up, a grin spreading from cheek to cheek so wide that Sasuke was sure he could see his molars.

“Really?!” He said, a little too loud, earning him more shushes from the neighbouring tables.

“Really.” Sasuke replied quietly, packing his books into his bag and standing up, slinging it over his shoulder. “Let’s go before you disrupt anyone else.”

\--

They arrived at a coffee shop after walking in a mostly comfortable silence. The bell jingled as the blonde opened the door, holding it for Sasuke to pass through. As he walked in he was met with warmth and the pleasant smell of coffee and cinnamon.

“Hey Iruka!” The other called once they reached the counter. A few seconds passed and a man appeared from the back, brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and a large scar passing over the bridge of his nose and onto his either side of his cheeks.

“Naruto! So good to see you! Good christmas?”

Naruto. So that was his companions name. A weird name honestly, Sasuke thought, but it suited him.

“It was alright, pretty lonely as per though. What about you? How’s Kakashi?”

“It was lovely. You know we moved recently? It was wonderful to celebrate as a family in our new house. And Pakkun’s surgery on his leg went well so although he was in the cone of shame a month or two ago, our furry little buddy was fine for Christmas. Kakashi is well, I’ll let him know you asked after him. You should stop round in the new year if you have time, I’m sure he’d love to see you!”

“Oh for sure, I don’t start back at Uni til the 13th so I’m sure I can come invade your home before then!”

“You know we’re always glad to have you. Now, what can I get you?”

“The usual please Iruka.”

“And for your friend?”

Naruto turned to him expectantly.

“Americano, no milk or sugar. Please.”

Naruto screwed up his nose at his order and Iruka laughed at his facial expression.

“Seems to have the opposite taste to you, kiddo.”

“You’re telling me. Black coffee! Eurgh!”

“Anyway, take a seat and I’ll bring your stuff over in a second.”

Naruto and Sasuke thanked the man and made their way to a table in the corner. It was a pretty small place but the atmosphere was nice. The tables were round, some with two chairs on either side, others with four surrounding it. Each table had a plaid tablecloth on it, and a small teal vase with a white flower in the centre. The walls were adorned with pictures of the city from years ago — The city hall as it was being built in 1898, the church being refurbished from 1958 to 1963, the erection of the city monument in 1930. It was interesting to see the landmarks Sasuke recognised so clearly as markers of his hometown when they were still fresh. Aside from the paintings, there were a few records on the walls and Sasuke noted they appeared to be from local bands and artists, which was a nice touch. Small, square windows lined the walls at regular intervals, letting in the glow from the setting sun and the slowly brightening street lamps outside. It was a shame he hadn’t come here before — it was pleasant, and from what he’d seen on the menu they served some basic food as well as hot and cold drinks, all at a reasonable price.

When he finished taking in his surroundings, Sasuke turned his attention back to Naruto who was looking at him expectantly.

“It’s a pretty nice place. I’ve never been here before.”

“I know right? I love it here. The coffee is so amazing, especially for the price! And Iruka is the best! His husband, Kakashi, was a good friend of my dad’s so I’ve known them both years. I’m a pretty regular customer.”

Sasuke noted the past tense when Naruto referred to his father. Was it possible that the other was in a similar position to himself? As sad as it was, with divorces, cancer, mental health, unplanned pregnancy and physical illnesses seeming so rife these days, it wasn’t unheard of for people his age to be missing a parent. However it was very rare Sasuke came across people the same as himself, who had been unfortunate enough to lose both parents at such a young age. He had been 16 when his parents had passed in a horrible train accident. He knew Naruto’s mother had died when he was 9, but no mention of his father’s passing had been made other than the reference to him in past tense. He noted that asking about Naruto’s family was possibly something to avoid, if he were to ask questions at all — so far he’d been happy to let his study-interruptor guide the conversation.

“I never caught your name by the way.”

“Sasuke.”

“Ooh, very posh. I bet you come from a well to-do family. I’m sure your last name is like Takamado or Akishino.”

“Those are monarchical names, Naruto. And no, my family are very normal. It’s Uchiha.”

“Oh you’re a U like me! Mine’s Uzumaki! Yours sounds more regal though.” He frowned, pouting and crossing his arms. “Why’d you get a cool name. Did you know Naruto means fishcake? How unfair is that!”

Sasuke tried to suppress a snort and failed miserably. “Your parents must’ve hated you.”

“I know right! At least it’s not a super obvious food. Imagine if they called me Sakana or Tamago...or even worse! An awful food! Imagine if they called me Sarada!”

“Sarada? Salad? Who would name their child after salad?”

Naruto laughed loudly. “Fuck knows, but I bet some idiot would. What does your name mean?”

“It doesn’t have a meaning, but as far as I know ‘Sasuke’ originates from an old fictional ninja. Sarutobi Sasuke of the Sanada Ten Braves. Supposedly they assisted a warlord at the battles of Osaka Castle during the Japanese Civil War Era. He was very powerful. I think my parents liked the name because it sounded traditional though.”

Naruto whistled. “That’s so much cooler than fishcake.”

Sasuke smirked his agreement, and though he didn’t say it, he thought the name Naruto suited the other just fine. Iruka then appeared with their drinks, placing a plain black americano in front of Sasuke and…

“What on earth did you order?”

Naruto laughed, thanking Iruka and taking a large gulp of his drink. It was in a mug, and Sasuke could smell the coffee, but he could mostly see frothed milk, much like a cappuccino. On top there were marshmallows, sprinkles, a stick of chocolate, and there seemed to be caramel drizzled down the side.

“That looks like walking diabetes.”

Naruto laughed again, loudly. It was a pleasant laugh, warm and hearty and Sasuke found himself involuntarily smiling back.

“It’s called a Caramel Whip Delight. It’s got melted caramel drizzled into espresso and then frothed milk with a bunch of toppings. It’s sooo good! Do you wanna try?” Naruto asked, offering Sasuke his mug.

Sasuke wrinkled his nose, even the thought of that much sugar in one cup making him feel somewhat nauseous.

“I’m good thanks.”

“Not a fan of sweets, Sasuke?”

“No.”

Naruto feigned shock, his mouth forming a small O and he placed his hand on his chest above his heart.

“But how?! The Gods blessed us with sugar and all things sweet!”

“Too much sugar makes my teeth hurt.”

“Maybe that just means you’re overdue a trip to the dentist. I bet you’ve got all sorts of cavities and gum disease lurking inside your mouth.”

Sasuke ruffled, slightly insulted. “My teeth are in great condition, thank you very much.”

“Huh, I don’t believe you! Maybe that’s why you don’t smile — your teeth are all jacked up and nasty. I bet you’re missing a front tooth. If you smiled they’d call you gappy-tooth Uchiha!”

“I do not having missing teeth!” Sasuke replied in a disgruntled tone, crossing his arms indignantly.

“Oh poor Sasuke, his horrible ugly smile, his yellowed, crooked teeth with receding gums…”

At this point Sasuke had enough of the incessant teasing and bit the bullet, spreading his lips into a wide, probably unflattering, toothy grin much like the one Naruto seemed to wear on his face a lot of the time.

Naruto looked at Sasuke, examined his teeth, and then laughed.

“That does not look natural on you! You’re right though — what a set of pearly whites! Have you had teeth whitening?”

“It’s called brushing and flossing.”

Naruto laughed at this and continued to sip at his overly sweet drink. They fell into easy conversation. Sasuke learned Naruto was attending University in the capital city about 3 hours away, staying in a house with 5 other third year boys. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do after he finished his undergraduates degree, but he’d been working part-time at a bar on campus since first year to save enough to go travelling once he graduated.

Sasuke explained he was attending the local University, about 40 minutes from where they were currently, to save on rent since Itachi charged him half as much to live at home as any other landlord would to live in a student house. He worked as a lifeguard at the local pool most afternoons and evenings — it was quite a menial job but for the most part he got to sit around not talking to anyone. Plus the pay was good, so he’d gladly chosen the work over something like Naruto did — far too much socialisation for Sasuke’s preference. Sasuke was also saving, though he wasn’t sure what for. He was fairly certain he wanted to do a Masters post-grad but he hadn’t finalised any plans yet.

They spoke about Naruto’s plans for travelling, where they both visited before and Sasuke was surprised how easy and enjoyable he found the conversation. They ranged from topic to topic and Sasuke found himself ordering another drink because they had been there so long. Currently Naruto was reciting funny drunk stories from his years at University so far.

“Okay so then, Kiba comes home. He’s drunk as fuck, and he tells me on his way back he got bitten by a spider and now he’s Spiderman right? So I’m saying to him like ‘Dude, you’re not Spiderman — you’re just drunk.’ but he’s insistent. So guess what he does?”

“What?”

“He runs at our living room wall, fully expecting to stick — like Spiderman — apart from he’s obviously not Spiderman so he just runs head first into the wall, breaks his nose and the first layer of plaster.”

Naruto was laughing at this point, and he rummaged for his phone, flicking through some pictures before laughing harder and showing Sasuke his screen. Sasuke stifled a laugh as he is presented with a picture of a brunette man face down on the floor, an evident dent in the wall above him. Naruto flicked to the side and played a short video. He can hear Naruto wheezing behind the camera, evidently from laughing too hard, and the groans of the man on the floor as he sits up and presents his bloody face and obviously broken nose to the cameraman who then begins to laugh even harder.

Sasuke didn’t know why he did it, but his thumb automatically flicked one more picture to the right, something he is used to doing from reading through the pictures he takes of his lecture notes on his phone. Except this is not his phone and the picture that now greeted him on the screen is not what he had been expecting. Taken from an above angle he is met with a tanned, muscular torso wearing nothing but tight blue briefs which are being pulled down by one large hand, revealing just the tiniest hint of trim blonde hair. Sasuke quickly shoved the phone back at Naruto who blushed a deep shade of red.

“Oh my god why did you scroll?! That’s so embarrassing!”

Sasuke looked down, trying to blink the image from his retinas and failing horrendously. “I don’t know! Muscle memory I guess.”

“Christ I am so sorry that’s so…” Naruto groaned and covered his face with his hands, slumped down in his chair. “It was for my grindr profile, alright? A guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do!” He said with a laugh, finally lifting his head and giving Sasuke a sheepish grin. However Sasuke’s brain was now focused on something else entirely.

“You’re gay?”

“Yeah. Well, bi, but same difference. I lean towards men though. Women are so...complicated.”

“Agreed.”

“I bet girls throw themselves at you. Do you have a girlfriend?”

“No...actually I’m gay too. Fully gay though, not any of your halfway stuff.” He smirked.

“Hey! That’s biphobic! We have rights too!”

Sasuke smirked again, taking another sip of his slowly cooling coffee. In hindsight buying two caffeinated drinks in the evening probably wasn’t the wisest idea but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t enjoying it.

“What’s the scene like in London then?”

Sasuke loved his hometown, but one of his biggest complaints was the lacking gay scene. It wasn’t a very small city, but it certainly wasn’t large and there was only one gay bar and one gay club — it got old pretty fast. He had visited his friend Suigetsu who attended University in Birmingham a few hours away and found that in the larger city the variety of gay bars was so much wider. Pride in Birmingham even had a parade which turned out over 50,000 people onto the streets to celebrate, according to his friend. Naruto attended University in the suburbs of London, which surely meant the scene was even more vast.

“It’s great! We have a whole area in Soho called Old Compton Street. It’s fantastic, so much better than here. I don’t think I could stand being limited to straight clubs.”

“You don’t have much choice living here.”

“Yeah, that sucks dude. So, to amend my previous question — do you have a boyfriend?”

“Sadly, the answer remains the same: nope.”

“That surprises me, you know.”

Sasuke cocks his head, raising an eyebrow and presenting the silent question.

“I mean don’t get me wrong, you came off as pretty rude at first, but you’re actually a pretty nice guy. You’re smart, a good listener, attractive and you have a decent sense of humour. All those are pretty good boyfriend qualities.”

“Are you flirting with me, Naruto?” Sasuke asked, his voice a little deeper as he looked up at the other over the rim of his coffee mug, dark eyelashes partially obscuring his irises.

Naruto flushed pink and floundered. “No of course n-not I’m just—”

“I was kidding, idiot. Relax.”

“Asshole.” But Naruto seemed to relax, and his mouth spread into one of his wide, easy grins. “Speaking of clubs, New Year’s Eve is just around the corner. One of the biggest party nights of the year! You got any plans?”

“Hm. While attending University nearby has the perks of saving on rent, it also means that the few LGBTQ friends I had have all moved to Universities further afield, so most of them are celebrating New Years in their University cities rather than being restricted to solely straight events here. My remaining friends have invited me to a club night but it’s at Holo and…”

“Oh god Holo is awful!” Naruto interrupted with pained laughter, his expression set in something of a grimace. “Shitty chart music, overpriced drinks and you’re likely to get punched for even looking at another guy. I don’t blame you for bypassing that one!”

“Yeah, I politely declined. I’d rather spend New Years Eve alone than surrounded by homophobes and bad music.”

Naruto seemed to sit in thought for a moment, absent-mindedly twisting his mug by the handle.

“Look, I know this is a little out of the blue but I genuinely enjoy your company and I’m a firm believer that everyone should bring in the new year with copious amounts of alcohol. I’ll be going a friend’s party about an hour and a half out of town—did you wanna join? I’m driving there so I can give you a lift if you need and there’s spare beds to crash in at her house—we’ll drive back the next day. Whatcha say?”

Sasuke halted and stared at Naruto. He really was unlike anyone else Sasuke had ever met — first inviting a complete stranger for coffee on a whim, and then encouraging said stranger to gatecrash his plans for New Year’s Eve. Naruto said he enjoyed his company and Sasuke would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t feel the same, but he also worried Naruto was inviting him out of a guilty conscience that Sasuke would be alone for New Year’s.

“I don’t want to interrupt your plans with your friends. I don’t mind spending it alone — it’s just another night really.”

Naruto gasped dramatically, putting his hands on either side of his face, his mouth making an ‘O’.

“‘Just another night!’ How dare you! New Year’s Eve is special — you have fun, laugh, and enter the New Year in good spirits. Have you never heard of the saying ‘You start the year as you mean to go on’?! You’re giving yourself bad luck by starting the new year alone and miserable. I insist you come with me if you’ve got nothing better to do. I promise I’ll show you a good time — I’ve been told I’m a fun drunk and my friends are all great and not homophobic!”

“I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone so passionate about New Year’s before.” Sasuke said, slightly taken aback by the other’s dramatic response.

“Well, not to get all doom and gloom on you but I don’t have a lot of family, so Christmas can be pretty shitty— it’s so family orientated and you feel very aware when you’re lacking that. But to most people New Years is about friends and I love that — my friends are like the family I’ve chosen for myself and I appreciate that it’s an occasion you celebrate with your buddies. Besides, who doesn’t love an excuse to get trashed?”

Sasuke tilted his head slightly, regarding Naruto’s explanation. For one, it pretty much confirmed his suspicions that the other was in a similar position to himself — without parents. However Naruto had also mentioned he was an only child...did he spend Christmas entirely alone? It was a sad image for someone as vibrant and talkative as Naruto to have to spend the festive period in isolation while those around him were with their loved ones. But he was right— as far back as Sasuke could remember, New Year’s had been spent with friends. Perhaps when he was younger it was with family friends, Itachi and possibly even his parents in attendance as well, but certainly since he had begun to drink around age 16, New Year’s Eve was spent at a friend’s house — and later a club or event venue — with, as Naruto had labelled them, his ‘chosen family’. He could appreciate the other’s sentiment in a celebration he was able to fully participate in without feeling left out because of a lack of something. It just so happened that his friends had decided to go to a particularly shitty club this year, or were off half way across the country to celebrate.

“Okay. I don’t see why not.”

Naruto’s face lit up and he gave Sasuke once of his signature grins, so wide that Sasuke was sure he could see every tooth in the other’s mouth, and that his cheeks looked like they might split.

“Right answer! It’ll be awesome — I promise you won’t regret it.”

 


	2. The Party

Sasuke wasn’t entirely sure why, but he was kind of nervous. Although he’d never seen himself as the most proficient socialisor — he could be somewhat cold and difficult to approach — he also wasn’t shy or nervous by any means. He could blend in if he needed to, and generally did not have difficulties with large crowds or new faces, even if they weren’t his preference. People tended to gravitate towards him anyway, so often all he needed to do was stand around half listening and nodding at the appropriate times. Generally speaking, he wasn’t too bothered about making fantastic first impressions, or impressing people at all for that matter. Despite this, he found himself standing in-front of the mirror, holding up two different sweaters and despairing over which to choose. A quick knock on the door brought him out of his thoughts and he quickly shoved the offending articles of clothing onto the bed. The door opened and Itachi stepped slightly in, regarding his brother and then the clothes on the bed with a smirk.

“Going out tonight?”

“Just a party out of town. I won’t be back until tomorrow.”

Itachi nodded and looked again at the array of clothes on the bed — not just the sweaters Sasuke had been comparing but an assortment of jeans, shirts and even some shoes were set out too.

“Dressing to impress?” His brother asked, his voice teasing.

“Not particularly. Just unsure of what to wear.” Sasuke replied defensively.

Itachi gave a low laugh. “I’ve been called back into work, I probably won’t be done for quite a while so I might not see you before you leave. Incase I don’t — Happy New Year Sasuke. I’ll try and get tomorrow evening off so we can eat together at the very least.”

“Sure. Happy New Year, I hope work doesn’t keep you too long.”

“Thanks, me too.” His brother replied, turning to leave. “Oh and Sasuke?”

“Hm?”

“Choose the navy sweater, the burgundy one tends to sit funny and makes you look like you’ve got love-handles. Have fun!”

And with that Itachi left, quietly shutting the door behind him and leaving Sasuke to grit his teeth to stop himself from calling out another defensive comment in his brother’s wake.

He turned back to the bed and after a moment of contemplation, begrudgingly picked up his navy blue champion sweater and slipped it on over his head. Itachi was right — there was an awful picture of him from last year wearing the burgundy one where it had ruffled up weirdly at the bottom and gave the impression of a gigantic beer-belly and love-handles...not quite the look he was going for when he prided himself on a good diet and reasonable exercise regime. He then settled on a pair of straight leg black jeans which were pin-rolled slightly at the bottom, and his favourite black and white vans.

Satisfied with how his outfit looked, he went into the bathroom and brushed his teeth, drying off the brush afterwards and packing it into his small toiletry bag he took with him for overnight stays. He spritzed on a few sprays of his favourite Burberry aftershave and slipped a small silver ring into the hole in his left earlobe.

Sasuke returned to his room, packing a spare pair of boxers into his bag, along with a fresh tshirt and his toiletry bag. His wallet, phone charger and a bottle of whisky alongside a few cans of coke had already been packed earlier. Sasuke slipped his phone out of his pocket and texted his most recently acquired contact — Naruto — letting him know he was ready whenever. It was around 7pm, they were planning to drive to Naruto’s friend’s — Sakura, he reminded himself — and stop for some late dinner on the way, aiming to get there between 9 and 9:30pm.

Sasuke busied himself on his phone and before long he heard a car pull up outside his house, the device in his hand buzzing a few moments later.

Sender: Naruto  
_here  
im in the red ford btw_

He got up and looked out of his window, sure enough he could see a red Ford Fiesta parked up the curb just outside. He grabbed his bag and phone, turning off his lights as he walked downstairs and out the front door, locking it behind him. It was already dark out, thanks to daylight savings, and the street lamps illuminated the cold puffs of breath leaving his mouth as he walked to the car, slipping in the passenger seat.

“Hey.”

Sasuke turned to Naruto as he began to pull out, the dark car not doing much to aid his vision but from what he could make out the other was no longer wearing the orange hat and seemed to have a lot of unruly blonde hair that had previously been hidden.

“Hey dude. How’ve you been?”

If Sasuke was concerned that the journey might be a little awkward, he needn’t have worried. It was as if they were old friends, instantly falling into comfortable chatter and banter. Naruto put the radio on and started loudly singing along to ‘Thank you, next’ by Ariana Grande until Sasuke threatened to grab the wheel and crash the car if he didn’t stop. They compromised by plugging Sasuke’s phone into the aux and listening to one of those premade Spotify ‘throwback’ playlists with hits from the 90s and 00s. ‘Don’t Phunk With My Heart’ by the Black Eyed Peas started playing.

“God this takes me back! You know, I had a phase where I was totally obsessed with the Black Eyed Peas when I was maybe 10 years old? I changed my name on MSN to ‘Nar.u.to’ to replicate Will.I.Am even though my name doesn’t work at all.”

Sasuke smirked, finding it easy to imagine Naruto doing something similar even now. It wasn’t that he thought the other was stupid particularly — they had upheld some intellectually engaging conversation and Sasuke could tell Naruto was passionate and educated in subjects he found interesting — however he came off as pretty dumb, in the sense that he would make obvious mistakes without a care in the world — something Sasuke could not relate to. It was nice to be around someone who clearly didn’t mind making a fool out of themselves if it relaxed or entertained the people he was with. He’d been very outwardly emotionally stunted as a child and a teen, determined to keep his walls up at all times, but as he’d matured and grown into himself he was trying to let go and loosen up a little, which was something Naruto seemed to have mastered.

“That doesn’t shock me.” Sasuke paused for a moment, then added. “If it makes you feel better, I had about 10 posters of Christina Aguilera in my room when I was younger — she was my idol for a good few years.”

Naruto started laughing, a warm, hearty laugh that made Sasuke chuckle as well.

“How very straight of you.”

“Indeed.”

They fell into comfortable silence, listening to songs from their childhood. Sasuke’s prior anxiety around the party diminished, and he found himself somewhat looking forward to the night ahead. About an hour in Naruto turned off into a large service station with several restaurants inside. They decided to eat at Nandos because the queue was short and apparently Naruto was craving chicken. Sasuke ordered a Fino Pitta with Supergrain and Chips while Naruto got a half medium chicken with peri salted chips and spicy rice. They ate quickly, Naruto moaning slightly into his chicken. Soon they were back in the car, Naruto dominating the conversation as had become custom for them, with Sasuke adding his two cents when necessary. It was about 9pm when the long country roads and motorways slowed into urban streets and soon they were pulling up to a large detached property on the outskirts of the city. Naruto parked in the driveway alongside around 7 other cars and they got out, Sasuke grabbing his bag from the footwell while Naruto retrieved his own rucksack from the boot.

They walked to the door and Naruto knocked loudly, bending down and shouting through the letterbox.

“Oi Pinky! Your favourite human ever has arrived!”

Sasuke could hear laughter from inside and then a key turned in the door before it opened and a girl with bubblegum pink hair stood beaming at them in the doorway. She was quickly enveloped in a huge hug from Naruto, who picked her up and spun her around before placing her back on the ground. She kissed his cheek with a smile before turning to Sasuke.

“Hi! You must be Sasuke! Naruto told me he was bringing a new friend. I’m Sakura, it’s so nice to meet you!”

She opened her arms for a hug, which Sasuke stiffly returned, Naruto laughing at his obvious discomfort.

“Good to meet you.” Sasuke replied politely, which earned him another laugh from Naruto.

“Sorry about him, Sakura. I forgot to mention he’s got a bit of a stick up his arse. Nothing a few drinks can’t solve though I’m sure.” He winked at Sasuke who returned the look with a half-hearted glare.

Sakura stepped aside to let them in and Sasuke was glad to be out of the cold. The house was homey — pictures of Sakura’s family lined the walls, soft rugs covered the wood floors and flowers were placed on all the countertops in sight. Sakura ushered them in and took Naruto’s jacket, putting it on a coat stand in the hallway.

“There’s a few people here already, but most are arriving at about 10 I think.” Sakura said to them with a smile. “Naruto mentioned you’re staying the night — there’s 4 spare rooms. 2 have been taken but you two can take the others, or you can squeeze into one in-case somebody else needs the last one. There’s a blow up mattress you can put on the floor.”

Naruto confirmed they’d share incase another guest needed to use the last bedroom and Sasuke nodded — it only seemed fair really. Naruto led them up to their room where they quickly inflated the bed and Sasuke put on the sheets and blankets Sakura had left out. They retrieved their alcohol and mixers from their bags and then left them in the room, returning back downstairs with Naruto chattering away about Sakura’s last New Year’s Party. Apparently a lot of people attended, most of whom Naruto knew.

“Which high school did you go to anyway?” Sasuke asked. Their hometown only had 4 high schools, and Sasuke didn’t recognise Naruto or Sakura which meant he must’ve attended one of the other 3.

“Cliffside — pretty much everyone I know who’s coming tonight went there. You?”

“Robertson’s High.”

“I should’ve known! Of course you went to the grammar school. Damn nerd.”

They walked into the kitchen where there was about 7 people already milling around with drinks in their hands. Naruto was greeted warmly and then introduced Sasuke to them; Lee, Hinata, Shikamaru, TenTen, Neji, and Choji. They all greeted Sasuke with warm smiles, and he could see how Naruto easily fitted into this group. Naruto turned to introduce a brown-haired man to Sasuke, but Sasuke beat him to it—

“You’re Spiderman right?”

“I’m wha—” Kiba’s brows furrowed in confusion and then a look of realisation spreads across his face, along with the creeping red of blush. “You asshole!” He turns to Naruto who is now doubled over laughing, and Sasuke can hear chuckles of laughter from the others behind him. Kiba gets Naruto in a headlock, rubbing his knuckles into blonde hair. “You need to stop showing everyone those videos!”

When the laughter and noogies subside, Kiba turns back to Sasuke, who is looking at him with a smirk.

“I’m Kiba. Please ignore anything and everything Naruto has already told you about me. He brings out the worst in us — it’s like his stupidity rubs off on you.”

Sasuke chuckles, and shakes Kiba’s outstretched hand.

“Sasuke.”

From there they poured themselves drinks, and Sakura set some music playing on the surround system in the kitchen. The atmosphere was light, and Sasuke was glad they arrived early so he could at least become familiar with some people other than Naruto before the masses arrived. He wasn’t going out of his way to speak to anyone, but even having a few familiar faces in a crowd of strangers was a blessing at parties.

Sasuke stood back, sipping his drink as he watched Naruto flit from person to person, sparking smiles and laughter in whoever he spoke to. He was grinning and nudging people, drawing out conversation and cracking jokes. Sasuke could tell Naruto was the heart of this group — the one who brought out the best in all of them. It was just like Naruto had been with him at the library — bold and almost embarrassingly eager for social interaction, but pure and warm. Naruto had no ulterior motives, no drive for self-gain, he just enjoyed being around people and people enjoyed being around him. Conversation with Naruto was easy, it was fun and comfortable, and the thought briefly flickered across Sasuke’s mind how surprised he was that someone hadn’t snatched Naruto up and claimed him for their own. He pressed the thought down, but that warm bubble he felt in his stomach watching Naruto light up the world around him remained.

After a few minutes, Naruto returned to Sasuke’s side, refilling their cups again.

“So, what do you think of my friends?”

“They seem nice.”

“Nice? They’re the best! We’ve all known each other for years — I can’t imagine what I’d do without them! It’s really sucked since we all moved across the country to University but for so long New Years has been something we’ve always done together.”

The corners of Sasuke’s lips curved upwards and he sipped at his drink again, listening contentedly to Naruto yammer about New Year’s and his resolutions and the party. Naruto had a tendency to jump from topic to topic — as if his brain couldn’t stay in one place for a very long time. Ordinarily Sasuke would find this annoying — he liked consistency and organisation, even in conversation, but something about how full of life Naruto was, how enthusiastically he spoke about everything drew you in and made you appreciate what he was saying.

Naruto was still chattering away, now talking about a dog he’d had as a child and how it was scared of fireworks and once it crapped right in the middle of the carpet when a particularly loud bang had ‘literally scared the shit out it’. The doorbell rang and he saw Sakura run off to answer it and soon a large group of people entered the room.

From there, the doorbell rang periodically every 5 minutes, more and more people entering the house, pouring drinks and beginning to mingle. Sakura dimmed the lights and turned up the music and soon it felt so familiar to the few parties Sasuke had attended in his first year of University. The alcohol was helping — he was on his third cup of whisky and coke and he felt the pleasant buzz of intoxication bubbling up from his stomach to his head.

“Beer pong!” Came a voice from the dining area and Sasuke found himself tugged by his wrist in the direction of the noise. Naruto’s grasp on his skin was warm and firm, and Sasuke struggled against his intoxicated brain trying not to focus on it.

They came into the room where someone had set up red cups on the table. Kiba was repeatedly throwing a table-tennis ball up into the air and catching it, while a number of other people gathered round the table.

“You two, pick a team! Mine or Sakura’s!” Kiba said to them, motioning to himself and Sakura.

Naruto turned to him, a cheeky smile on his face.

“I’ll take Kiba’s team, you take Sakura’s. Whoever’s team loses has to do a number on Karaoke when we set it up later.”

“Naruto, there is no way in hell I am doing _karaoke_.” Sasuke said the last word as if it offended him.

“Well, I mean, if you’re too pussy for a little competition that’s fine. I should’ve known you’d be intimidated by my abilities. It’s a little disappointing really, I thought you’d be up to the challenge but you’re just too scared to lose to me I gu—”

“Fine.”

Naruto smirked at him, giving him a wink before moving over to Kiba’s side of the table. Sasuke knew he’d been played, but his competitive streak ran deep and he wasn’t about to sit there and be called a pussy over a game of beer pong.

They took it in turns, 5 people on each team. While most were pretty average, landing one ball every few throws, Kiba was exceptionally bad. He appeared to have absolutely no aim, though whether that was the alcohol talking or an innate lack of ability, Sasuke had no idea. Sakura wasn’t much better — while her aim was good, her throws tended to be too strong and the ball would soar straight over the table. Sasuke was surprised that Naruto was actually living up to his confidence — he had good aim and tended to sink most of the balls he threw. Sasuke was also doing well, and in the end their teams stepped back to let them fight for the final two cups — one on each side.

“I can’t wait to hear you sing your heart out in Karaoke!” Naruto teased, voice louder than necessary likely due to having to down about 3 extra pints of beer since they had begun. “Maybe I’ll make you do Christina — I know how much you adore her.” He grinned.

“It’s not over yet, Uzumaki. You’ll be up there singing Meet Me Halfway before you know it.”

Sasuke squared up to take his last throw, his mind suddenly displaying the humiliating image of him having to sing Beautiful by Christina Aguilera to a room full of strangers which was enough to steady his hand and make sure he absolutely did not miss this shot. He threw and thankfully the ball bounced once and straight into Naruto’s remaining cup. He gave Naruto a triumphant look as the blonde reluctantly pulled out the ball and downed the beer.

“Unlucky.”

“Pfft,” Naruto stuck his tongue out at him, wiping the beer from around his mouth with the back of his hand “you just got lucky! I’ll beat you next time for sure. And I’ll up the stakes — I’ll make you run round naked if you lose or something!”

“I’m sure you’d love that, wouldn’t you?” Sasuke said with a smirk, moving around the table to stand closer to Naruto, who flushed pink.

“You think you’re pretty cute don’t you?” Naruto retorted, but his cheeks were still tinged with colour.

“Cute? Not really. Handsome? Dashing? Sexy? Yes.”

Naruto let out a loud laugh and bumped Sasuke’s shoulder. “Yeah, yeah — that ego of yours certainly isn’t irresistible.”

“But you don’t deny my claims?”

“It would be unlucky to lie to someone right before the turn of the new year, wouldn’t it?” Naruto replied with a wink, walking back to the kitchen presumably to find more to drink and leaving Sasuke blushing in his wake.

The more alcohol they consumed, the flirtier they seemed to become. Sasuke would be lying if he said Naruto wasn’t attractive — he most definitely was — but he hadn’t anticipated the level of flirtatious banter this evening. Not that he was complaining; attention from an attractive man who also liked men wasn’t something he was opposed to.

Sasuke walked into the kitchen, catching Naruto pouring himself another vodka.

“Shots?” Sasuke asked, reaching for a stack of small plastic shot glasses on the side.

“Hell yeah! Whisky or vodka?”

“Whisky.”

Naruto made a face. “Eugh. I don’t know why I asked.”  
Sasuke poured them both a shot of his whiskey and they threw it back, the burn of the alcohol in the back of his throat somewhat dull due to the amount he’d already consumed. Naruto made another face, eyebrows scrunched together in disgust.

“That is horrible. I don’t know how you drink that shit.”

“Coming from you — vodka tastes like paint stripper.”

Naruto gasped, grabbing the vodka bottle and cradling it like a child. “Don’t listen to the nasty man, baby, he doesn’t mean that. You taste delightful. I love you so much.” He then proceeded to kiss the bottle.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re weird?” Sasuke asked, eyeing Naruto giving his bottle little pecks.

“Yep! Many, many times.”

“Well I’m telling you again — you’re weird.”

“All part of my irresistible charm!” Naruto said with a laugh, continuing to pour himself another drink. Sasuke joined him, grabbing a glass and his mixer.

“Hm. Not so sure about that.”

“You suck.” Naruto pouted, taking a large gulp of his drink.

“It’s not unheard of.”

Naruto spat his drink out, spraying the work surface with vodka and lemonade. His cheeks were flushed again, his ears tinted pink.

“Stop it!”

“Stop what?” Sasuke asked, feigning innocence as he took a sip of his own drink.

“The innuendos!”

“Or what?”

“Or...or..in my drunken, alcohol-confused state I might mistake you for a highly attractive man and jump you!”

“Wouldn’t that be such a shame?”

Naruto flushed again and laughed, swinging his arm presumably to clobber Sasuke playfully but overcompensating slightly due to his inebriated state and successfully smacking Sasuke straight in the side of the head with his palm. Sasuke wobbled slightly and glared at Naruto.

“Did I really deserve that?”

“Shit! I meant to hit you in the arm but my hand-eye coordination goes a bit...funny after too many drinks.”

“You don’t need to tell me that.” Sasuke replies, rubbing his temple.

“How’s your head?”

“Haven’t had any complaints yet.”

Naruto pauses, brow screwed up in confusion and then realisation dawns across his features and his cheeks become tinged with red.

“I said stop with the innuendos! You’re going to give me heart failure! How would you feel if you killed me before it even struck midnight, huh? You’d be starting the new year with a death on your hands!”

Sasuke just laughs and takes another sip of his drink. He’s always been more chatty when he’s drunk, and definitely more flirty. Something about alcohol loosens his tongue and makes him say things he would absolutely not say when sober, and while he’s sure in the morning he will look back on his somewhat vulgar jokes and want to dig himself a grave to jump into, right now he’s enjoying the back and forth quite a lot.

It’s been a while since anyone has taken his interest, his last relationship broke off 2 years ago, and Naruto is quite different to anyone else he’s ever been interested in. Sasuke’s usual type is somewhat similar to himself — composed, driven, introverted. Someone who doesn’t require too much attention and won’t smother him. Naruto is the opposite — loud, unpredictable, extremely extroverted and full of never-ending energy that needs attending to, but something about him is alluring to Sasuke in a way he hasn’t experienced before. In the past it has taken many meetings, many dates and messages and weeks and weeks for Sasuke to let his guard down even a little, to open up and truly enjoy the presence of another. His ex spent almost 7 months courting him before they finally decided to make it official, and even then there were times when conversation was strained — Sasuke never quite let his walls down. But with Naruto, it’s just so easy. Conversation is fun, it’s simple and natural and comfortable. He’s happy to listen to Naruto babble, and Naruto appears happy to listen when he has something to say. Their humour flows easily and Sasuke can’t imagine having a conversation with the blonde where he feels anything other than comfortably himself. Not that he’s let his walls down already — it takes a lot more than this — but it’s a definite change to his usual level of guardedness with someone who by all intents and purposes is a stranger. They’ve met only once before, and yet the connection between them is undeniable.

Sasuke opens his mouth to reply to the blonde but he’s cut off by Sakura’s voice, shouting above the music:

“One minute to midnight!”

One minute? Sasuke checks his phone and sure enough — 11:59 is displayed at the top. The time must’ve passed quicker than he thought.

“I guess this is the last of 2018 then? It’s been a pretty good year for me — Uni has been great, my friends are well and I even beat my best score on Battlefield. I hope I can top it in 2019 though!” Naruto says with a grin.

“Your battlefield score isn’t the only thing you can top in 2019.” Sasuke replies smoothly, maintaining eye contact with the blonde as he sees the other’s cheeks go even pinker.

“I told you to stop with th—”

“Ten! Nine! Eight!”

The blonde’s half-hearted complaint is cut off as the chanting begins and Naruto grins at Sasuke as he joins in the countdown, Sasuke downing the rest of his drink before accompanying him.

“Seven! Six! Five!”

Sasuke steps a little closer to Naruto, enough so that he can feel the other’s body heat, but they’re not quite touching. Naruto meets his gaze, his voice becoming quieter as they finish the countdown.

“Four! Three! Two!”

Sasuke leans in, slowly, so Naruto has enough time to back away if his alcohol imbued brain has gotten the wrong idea, but he doesn’t.

“One!”

Their lips touch gently. Naruto is warm, and his lips are smooth against Sasuke’s as they slowly move in closer, Sasuke wrapping an arm round Naruto’s waist while his other hand buries itself in the short blonde spikes at the back of his head. Naruto places both his hands on Sasuke’s hips, bringing their bodies flush to one another as he tilts his head and opens his mouth, gently letting his tongue lap against Sasuke’s lower lip before exploring the inside of his mouth. He is met by Sasuke’s own tongue as they dance around each other, sliding against one another as they grow accustomed to the feeling of the other’s mouth. They kiss leisurely — less heated and passionate and more meaningful and comfortable — until slowly they break apart, Naruto placing one final peck on Sasuke’s now-closed lips with a contented sigh.

“Happy New Year.” Sasuke says softly, still close enough that his warm breath ghosts Naruto’s lips.

“Happy New Year, Sasuke. I have a feeling 2019 is going to be pretty interesting.”

**Author's Note:**

> Absolutely humongous thank you to my angel Rach for correcting all my mistakes and encouraging me! I couldn't have gotten this done without you!!!<3  
> Also a big thank you to Julie and Jackie for reading through as I was writing!  
> Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2019 is wonderful for you :)


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